Thanksgiving

I know I have posted a lot today, but I have the day off, Bruce is napping, and I have nothing else pressing my schedule to do. Bruce and I wanted to stay here for Thanksgiving, but we wanted to have something more than just the two of us. We decided to schedule the church building and invite anyone in the ward who wanted to join us for a Thanksgiving feast. We had some volunteers, so we gave everyone food assignments, brought a lot of games, and had a great time. I cooked a 23 lb. turkey which was ready way too early, and we had more food than we could possibly imagine between turkey, ham, duck, stuffing, potatoes, salad, etc.


We visited for a couple of hours before hand and played a friendly game of basketball. We played card games and more basketball after dinner. Bruce and I were at the church from 10:00 am until 7:00 pm, but it was loads of fun. We had a member in our ward from Taiwan bring a friend from China, and Bruce brought the Akbar from Iran and Dr. Ping from China (they work in his lab) also. They brought the duck and some other Chinese desserts. We had plenty of pie, and I took a boat load of leftovers home. I was really glad we were able to stay here for Thanksgiving. It made things a lot easier, and despite the preparations, it was actually a very relaxing day. I had the day off of school on Wednesday, so I made some of the dishes then. I'm glad we were able to express our thanks to every one sitting at the table. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.


The Saturday before Thanksgiving, we played in the Elder's quorum annual Turkey Bowl. I ended the game with 2 Touchdown, 1 TD pass, and 1 interception. Bruce and I were actually on the same team this year, but our team lost by 2 touchdowns. It was extremely cold in the morning, but we warmed up as we were running around. We enjoyed some great apple cider and donuts during half time.

Bruno!

Bruce has a new friend named Bruno. Let me explain. 5 years ago, I was driving home to Wyoming from a friend's wedding reception in Bear River City. It was close to 10:00 at night and I was traveling through Morgan canyon. As most people know, a lot of deer roam the canyon roads. When I was half way through the canyon, a deer jumped over the cement barrier right in front of me. It was still in the air when I hit it. It took out the front end of the car, broke the hood latch, and ended up totaling the car. The amount of damage far exceeded the worth of the car. This picture doesn't justify the extent of the damage, but it is all I have.
It was perhaps the most frightening experience of my life. In order to reference this deer in the future, my dad named him Bruce after my brother pointed out that I gave him some abuse. From that point on, I have referred to all deer as Bruces. Keep in mind that this was before I actually met my husband or anyone by the name of Bruce. That year my dad said that everyone at school would hear how much abuse I gave Bruce and no one would date me. He also thought it would be funny if I met someone named Bruce. Needless to say, that year in college was the year I had the most dates, and the year I met my husband Bruce. I lived through that experience and hoped that it would never happen again. Unfortunately I was dead wrong. Monday night I was driving home from our regional basketball game (we lost). Sellers road goes between corn and soybean field, and a small orchard. On the left side of the road I saw a deer starting to walk across. I slammed on my brakes and felt them lock up, but I didn't come to a complete stop. I was able to slow down to about 30 miles an hour. While I was slamming on my brakes, I saw the deer stop momentarily. However, right when I got next to it, it dropped it's head and ran full force into the side of my car. That blasted deer hit me. Poor Frank (the car)! I screamed and nearly let go of the wheel. The deer made me slow down to about 10 miles and hour, so I quickly gained control and pulled over to the side of the road. Although it was dark, I tried to make out the extent of the damage. Nothing too bad, except that now our car is ugly with this nice little hole in the side of it. It is hard to see, but there is also a slight scrape all the way across the driver's side door.

As is customary procedure, Bruce and I gave that deer a name. I had to think of something that went well with Bruce, so we came up with Bruno. If you are wondering why there is a hole in the side of our car, you can thank Bruno. Luckily no one else was injured in the slightest, and I think Bruno ran off anyway because we couldn't find him.

Louisville Kentucky

For the second year in a row, Bruce and I traveled to Kentucky for the All American National Livestock Expo centered in Louisville. Also for the second year in a row, Bruce was presented an award from the American Jersey association. Last year, we spent way too much time (3 whole days) with the animals at the Expo center. This year I told Bruce that I wanted to do something else in Louisville. I browsed the internet and found the Louisville Slugger Museum, a tourist attraction, and where they make baseball bats for the major leagues. I forced Bruce to take me, and there we spent an entire afternoon. We went on a tour of the Slugger factory where they showed us up close each step of the bat making process. Originally, they used to turn bats by hand, making one bat in 30 minutes. Now they have machines that do the same thing (with better accuracy) and it only takes 30 seconds per bat. Most bats were made of Ash. However, Barry Bonds uses maple bats and they have become increasingly popular. Maple is a little weaker wood than Ash, so most of the bats that break in the major leagues are made of Maple. The tour guide tried to tell us that Rawlings made all the bats that break. It is interesting to see how the bats have changed over time and which major league player has the most influence over the types of bats used. A major league player can call the factory and have a load full of bats delivered within two days. The longest part of the whole process is staining the bats which needs an entire day to dry. They are still dipped in the stain tank by hand. The major league players who have contracts with Louisville have an engraved autograph which the factory brands on the end of their bats. In the factory, they have separate machines and areas for major leagues, minor leagues, and retail bats. If you want to pay $60.00 or more, you can purchase a signature bat that is custom made for you. In the museum they have a presidential exhibit where it talks about the presidents' opinions on baseball and has their signed autograph from when they threw out the first pitch of the World Series. I didn't actually know that so many of our past presidents played baseball in college. William Taft was the first president to throw the first pitch of the World series, and Herbert Hoover was the only president to be booed while throwing the firs pitch because he shortened the baseball season during WWI. JFK and and one other president were ambidextrous and threw out a pitch with both their left and right hands. In one area of the museum, they have a cage that shows you how fast a 90 mph fast ball is. You stand behind the cage as if you were the umpire, and it takes 1/3 of a second for the 90 mph fastball to hit the catchers glove. No wonder a person who can hit the ball 3 times out of 10 is said to be a great hitter. They also have batting cages where you can use the same signed wooden bats as the professionals. Here is a picture of me batting using a Ken Griffy Jr. bat:

At the end of your tour, you get a free souvenir (a miniature Louisville Slugger). Bruce and I had tons of fun. If you are a baseball fan, you should definitely find your way to the Louisville Slugger museum.
We took a walk downtown Louisville, and enjoyed the view of the Ohio River.
We found the fake Derby horse to be quite funny, especially since it was placed in front of the bank.
Later, we drove for around an hour (supposed to be 12 minutes away) looking for the Louisville temple. Using Mapquest, we put in a Louisville zip code. The temple is not actually in Louisville, which is why it took so long to get there. After making 2 phone calls to the temple to ask for directions, we finally found it sharing the same parking lot as a church. We eventually did make it to the Livestock Expo, and I watched a Llama show. It was funny to watch a Llama try to go through an obstacle course even though I had no idea what they were being judged on. Our 3 day weekend to Kentucky was quite fun, but the Louisville Slugger Museum was definitely the highlight of the trip.
Enjoy the pictures:

Halloween

I know, I know... I am extremely far behind. The month of November brought 10 basketball games in about 16 days of school. We seemed to travel somewhere or do something every single weekend, and now I can't believe that the month of November is nearly over. I guess that is a good thing that life passes me by so quickly that I don't seem to notice the time of day, but at the same time I wonder what have I accomplished today? Surviving another day in front of a classroom is at times accomplishment enough, but I would like to find other things to do in my life than teach, grade, plan, and coach. That is why it is November 28 and I am now getting around to posting about Halloween. Where do I even begin?

To be completely honest, I'm not a big fan of Halloween. I don't really see the point of dressing up as some other object just to get a bunch of candy. In fact, I hate dressing up, and every year it is a debate as to what to dress up as, or if I should dress up at all. I don't want to be a complete "Bah Humbug", so I always go as something. However, I usually decide what I am going to be about an hour before the Halloween party, and then I am never very convincing with my costume. This year however, was slightly different. About a week before Halloween, I was talking on the phone to my 11 year old brother in law, Paul. He suggested that I should dress up as a pink Flamingo. At first I just laughed, but then I thought, what a great idea? No one will expect it, and no one else will be dressed like that. I went to the store 2 days before Halloween, and bought a few pink items of clothing. And Voila!



Bruce wanted to go as a type of clown and wear his "hot pants." However, while we were at the store buying pink clothes for my big debut, he found a small white hat and looked like Gilligan from Gilligan's island. Hence:


We enjoyed the Chilli and cornbread at the ward Trunk or Treat and we brought along some friends from China and Iran who work in Bruce's lab. They wanted to experience as much American culture as possible. They were delighted by the many creative costumes others dressed up as, and took plenty of pictures. They even handed out small Chinese treats.

That night I was invited by the woman I visit teach to go with her to the Illini football game Vs. Iowa. I excitedly accepted. When we got home Bruce went trick or treating to our neighbors house, and they gave him 2 tickets to the same football game because they were going out of town. Bruce had to find someone else to go with because I was already going with someone. We were both at the game, but we didn't sit anywhere near each other. Bruce was one one end of the stadium and I was on the other. Either way the fighting Illini pulled out a close victory 27-24. It was a very exciting game and a fun Halloween.

What kind of pie are you?

I saw this on my friends blog, so I thought I would try it out. I'm not really a big fan of pie, unless it is banana cream or peanut butter - those are the ones I like the best. Apple pie is good occasionally.

You Are Apple Pie

You're the perfect combo of comforting and traditional. You prefer things the way you've always known them. You'll admit that you're old fashioned, and you don't see anything wrong with that. Your tastes and preferences are classic. And classic never goes out of style. Those who like you crave security. People can rely on you to be true to yourself - and true to them. You're loyal, trustworthy, and comfortable in your own skin. And because of these qualities, you've definitely earned a lot of respect.

What Kind of Pie Are You?

Bruce on the other hand loves pie.
Bruce is:

You Are Pumpkin Pie

You're the perfect combo of uniqueness and quality. You're able to relate to many types of people with many different tastes. But you're by no means generic or ordinary. In fact, you're one of the most original people around. Those who like you are looking for something (or someone) special. You tend confuse people when they first meet you. But you're not as complicated as you seem. Even though you have a lot of spice and flavor to you, you're never overpowering. You are a calm and comforting force in people's lives.

What Kind of Pie Are You?

I voted!

Usually I am forcing myself to get out of bed by 6:50, sometimes as late as 7:00 so I can get ready and leave for school around 7:20. This morning however, I accomplished a mighty feat. I got out of bed at 5:50, hopped in the shower, dressed, and drove over to the polls to vote. I got there around 6:10, stood in line for about an hour and got back home at 7:15 - just in enough time to leave for school. Although I wasn't completely thrilled with the idea of losing sleep to fill in ovals, I felt like it was my civic duty to vote. I couldn't later because I had work, parent teacher conference, and basketball games to coach. I would not have been able to if I hadn't gotten up early to do so. My vote probably wouldn't have made a difference anyway, but at least I feel like I am a good citizen.

Helpful person!

We won both of our basketball games tonight. When our teams wins, I seal the victory with the ever famous victory dance. Over the past 3 games, I have had about 6 people ask me this question: "What the heck was that?"
Some fans like it, and are sad when we lose and they don't get to see the victory dance. I have even got some of the girls to join in. Others just think I am a little crazy. The principal of the elementary school saw it for the first time last night. He told me that the victory dance is a bad, bad dance. (If you haven't seen it, you might be able to convince me to perform it for you - if you get a victory that is.)
Tonight after the game I had the following conversation with that principal:

Principal Jeff: Brittney, where is the light switch that turns this stage light off.
Brittney: Oh, it's over there (pointing in the direction he just came from) somewhere. It's a button. If you push it, the light will turn off.
Jeff: Thanks, (sarcastically)that's a big help.
Brittney: I consider myself a very helpful person.

Batting Averages?

We had parent teacher conference at my school this week. Needless to say I have had some long days especially since I coached a basketball game both nights after my parent teacher conferences. Bruce has had an equally busy week, leaving us both exhausted at night. However, I must share a classic Bruce story. Last night as we were getting into bed and almost asleep, I started telling Bruce about one particular visit I had with a parent. She asked how I thought her son's writing was in comparison to other 7th grade boys. I paused for a moment, and she said that she thought his writing was atrocious. I relayed my concerns about his writing, and showed her a story he wrote about his favorite memory. He went to a tractor show in Indiana. The kid is a nut for tractors. I was trying to get him to expand a little more on his ideas to make it a little more exciting because his writing was very plain, bland, and repetitive. His mother said that the fact that he saw so many tractors was very exciting to him. Being married to a dairy farmer who thinks that cow shows are one of the highlights of life, I told her I could understand someones passion for something that other people would find ordinary or somewhat crazy (that's what I think).
As I was telling Bruce this last night, I could tell he was falling asleep because I could hear him lightly snoring and breathing heavily. (This happens a lot. I must be a pretty boring individual - I can put some of my students to sleep at times). I continued by saying, "and Bruce doesn't even know what I am saying anymore because he is sleeping, so it really doesn't matter what I say does it."
Suddenly Bruce jerked awake and said, "I heard everything you said to me. What were you saying about batting averages?"
I busted out laughing. No one mentioned a thing about batting averages.
Nonchalantly, Bruce turns over and says, "Okay, so maybe I was dreaming."
Bruce isn't a baseball kind of a guy, I wonder why he was dreaming about batting averages?